Round The World and other travels
A frequent flyer's collection of trip diaries
This is: Singapore & Malaysia 2014
across
the Channel
It was a damp, grey November day with the kind of
daylight deficit that Scotland is so adept at producing during the
onset of winter and throughout the season. I had a few items of
everyday business to attend to in the morning, but felt that I had
done a good job the previous day with preparations for this latest
trip in what I had taken to calling "my 2014 bout of travel
madness". Accordingly, after lunch, there was no last-minute panic
involved in my departure. For the third time in succession, I
followed my new local bus / train / tram routine for reaching
Edinburgh Airport; I was embarking on another lengthy trip and once
again had little appetite for the payment of unnecessary parking charges. On this
occasion I was glad that it would be the last such airport journey
for a while, as all three stages were plagued by one
of my pet hates: loud people.
There was a long queue for airport security, but it was one that kept moving. Once airside, I had an early evening-meal substitute around 4pm, in the form of a lowly ham and cheese baguette. Time passed surprisingly quickly considering my lounge-less state, and in due course I made my way to Gate 1E for boarding.
(Link to flight log in side panel)
There was a delay on arrival at Paris Charles de Gaulle while steps were brought to the aircraft, but this was balanced out when passengers reached the baggage reclaim hall to find their luggage already circulating on the belt. I travelled to Terminal 3 using the automated CDGVAL shuttle train, from where it was but a short walk to my first overnight stop at the airport Hilton. I quickly settled into my spacious sixth-floor room and spent some time doing online research in preparation for the following day's activities in the French capital.
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